Rating: A-
Dir: Paul Greengrass
Star: Matt Damon, David Strathairn, Joan Allen, Julia Stiles
When I wrote my original review, I concluded, “This is an amazingly kinetic experience, reminiscent of the best Alias episodes, that grabs you by the adrenal gland and squeezes it gently for two hours.” That reference to Alias gives you an idea of how long ago it was. But if anything, I sold this short. It’s one of the finest action/spy thrillers of all time, I would venture to suggest – up there with the best of the Bond franchise. Its qualities are all the more remarkable, considering how mediocre the second film was, made by the same writer, director and star. Everyone is greatly improved here, despite this starting mere minutes after the end of Supremacy.
The plot here starts with Jason Bourne (Damon) trying to contact a journalist with a source feeding him information about Treadstone. This puts him in the crosshairs of CIA executive Noah Vosen (Strathairn), the man in charge of Blackbriar, a project which is more or less Treadstone on ‘roids. Vosen’s efforts to terminate Bourne, and anyone on the fugitive’s side, bring him into conflict with fellow Deputy Director Pamela Landy (Allen), and former Treadstone agent Nicky Parsons (Stiles). Once again, you think people would have learned that going after Bourne is… unwise. Just let it go. However, since the results here are so impressive, and Strathairn makes for an excellent, committed and generally intelligent villain, I am prepared to overlook this.
Indeed, the script is considerably smarter all round, with Bourne being particularly clever. Another big improvement is Greengrass reining in his fondness for hyperactive editing. It’s still quite busy, occasionally a little too much so. The chase across the rooftops of Tangier would be a case in point. But it works to a far greater degree, and nowhere better than a scene in Waterloo Station, where Bourne is trying to shepherd his journalist contact past Vosen’s watchers and killers. This is a masterpiece of action cinema, like watching chess in human form, with surveillance, counter-surveillance and counter-counter-surveillance. Editor Christopher Rouse fully earned the Academy Award he won, but everyone involved in its construction deserves the highest praise. It’s one of the best such sequences in the 21st century.
To be honest, I found myself with a sneaking regard for Vosen. “No more getting the bad guys caught in our sights, then watching them escape while we wait for someone in Washington to issue an order.” Well, he’s not wrong there. He’s just out of his depth trying to neutralize Bourne, no matter how big a perimeter he demands be locked down. I would, perhaps, question his security protocols. Can the CIA not afford that hi-tech anti-spying apparatus known as “curtains”? Yet the payoff for this is just so delicious, once more, I’ve no issues with allowing it. There’s an unexpected surprise return at the end – no, it’s not his late girlfriend #JusticeForMarie – and it’s all highly satisfying. Great to see a franchise get back on track in such an effective manner.